This State Is Finally Getting Its First Costco
If you live in Maine, you may have heard the tall tales of people purchasing nearly life-size bags of dog food, jars of olives the size of your head, and packages of spinach that would have Popeye panting.
But alas, a Costco in your neck of the woods was not to be found . . . until now. The warehouse club just announced the opening of its very first location in the Pine Tree state.
Maine's first Costco is expected to open its doors to customers in late 2023 or early 2024, according to the Portland Press Herald. The 161,000-square-foot membership-only warehouse, complete with the coveted gas station, oversized parking spaces, and tall parking lot lights, will be built at the Innovation District of Scarborough Downs following a unanimous vote by the Scarborough Planning Board (previous meetings regarding Costco had grappled with the number of parking spaces, as the Scarborough Planning Board questioned the need for a large parking lot).
"I know they're a good employer and do things right," Curtis Picard, president and CEO of the Maine Retail Association, told Mainebiz. "It tends to be a destination store."
Up until now, Maine residents had to travel to Nashua, N.H., and Danvers, Mass. to get their Costco fix—though the state does have a Sam's Club and a BJ's, so they weren't totally without warehouses.
It seems, however, that Costco brings a different club feeling.
"Congratulations," Planning Board chairwoman Rachel Hendrickson said following the vote, according to the Portland Press Herald. "I look forward to becoming a member."
This leaves just three states without a Costco warehouse: Rhode Island, West Virginia, and Wyoming.
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With more than 113 million members worldwide, and a cult following obsessed with the bulk products from Kirkland-brand toilet paper to the $1.50 hot dogs, America's largest warehouse chain continues to grow.
It already has 572 locations nationwide, and 828 locations worldwide, and each carries about 4,000 products.
